Fatihah Ramzi, DigitalCFO Asia | 27 October 2022
David Brown, President & Chief Commercial Officer of IPC Systems, Inc
The COVID-19 pandemic’s ramifications are still shaking the world economy. Following the closures in 2020 and the supply chain problems in 2021, businesses all around the world are currently experiencing a new wave of disruptions. Investors frequently experience emotional reactions during times of market volatility, reactions that may influence their judgment and even have an impact on their long-term plans. Investor sentiment frequently mirrors the ups and downs of the market. Even if we have little control over market volatility, knowing how technology may assist firms more effectively deal with disruptions can be helpful.
To find out more about this, DigitalCFO Asia spoke with David Brown, President & Chief Commercial Officer of IPC Systems, Inc to find out how businesses can better weather through market volatility.
Top Business Priorities In A Volatile Market Environment
“In a volatile market, the key thing for any business is to ensure good continuity of their systems and capabilities and on top of that, businesses need to work with the right partners to ensure integrity of operations,” says David Brown, President & Chief Commercial Officer of IPC Systems, Inc.
1. Ensuring Good Continuity
During these trying circumstances for the industry, finance institutions must manage uncertainty. Companies will require a new business model in order to succeed, one that places a strong emphasis on creating value through a greater return on invested capital. Organizations can rely on a tailored business continuity plan to effectively support the business during trying times. These strategies assist businesses in avoiding loss of revenue, lost clients, and reputational harm. Let’s examine what this implies and how to implement a business continuity plan.
Planning for business continuity is essential for your organization to survive a crisis. A system for protecting against and recovering from potential dangers is provided by a business continuity plan. These plans can aid in identifying and defining the risks that may have an impact on the business’s operations and financial results. Having the ability to manage any crisis well may boost customer and staff confidence, help develop a favorable reputation for your business, and, ideally, keep it profitable while navigating adversity.
2. Ensuring Operational Integrity
To verify that businesses are following the proper policies and procedures and that they can recognize and mitigate risks promptly, companies must undergo stringent testing and supervisory processes. This will also ensure that they have enough controls in place for a high level of integrity, security and resilience.
Companies should protect systems from internal and external dangers, including cyber threats, in addition to rigorous testing and monitoring procedures. Additionally it is also essential that the development of systems and procedures by firms for prompt problem-solving and proactive risk mitigation are in place. The immediate task for businesses in a turbulent market climate is to deal with the problem of information-system integrity, security, and resilience.
Successfully Continuing Business Operations Despite Market Volatility
“In today’s market climate, it is essential that businesses are being fully prepared in terms of infrastructure and assets in any scenario,” says David Brown, President & Chief Commercial Officer of IPC Systems, Inc.
IPC has been in business for over 50 years and in March 2020, they had to mobilize for the first time ever, thousands of employees to work remotely at a global scale, simultaneously. It was a huge undertaking for the company and their customers as they had to change their operations to mostly virtual.
What IPC noticed is that there were a lot of digital processes that had to go on to ensure their operational integrity especially in the area of security. The company had to ensure that they were able to carry out their day-to-day office operations and liaising with clients on a virtual level. This took a lot of testing, monitoring and implementation in a short amount of time due to the pandemic. They had to ensure that it worked and complied with regulations.
The ability to manage operational integrity as one component of a larger framework for addressing all main risks throughout the enterprise—including how workers behave—has increased flexibility for businesses in the post-pandemic environment. However, when the pandemic initially started, businesses had an urgent challenge in addressing the problem of information-system integrity, security, and resilience. Businesses must make the most of the flexibility available now to enhance their assets and infrastructure in order to better withstand future disruptions.
Technologies That Help With Current Hybrid Environment
“The key is the ability to have the same experience of the primary location at any secondary or tertiary location,” says David Brown, President & Chief Commercial Officer of IPC Systems, Inc.
Collaboration tools are one such technology that has evolved into a necessity in any hybrid working environment. The term “team collaboration tools” or “team collaboration software” refers to the various software programs and online resources that businesses and their employees can use to follow the development of shared projects regardless of their geographical location.
Cloud storage, document synchronization and file-sharing software, instant messaging, and online whiteboards are just a few examples of team collaboration technologies. Collaboration tools help employees communicate more effectively when they are spread out across multiple places, but they can also be useful when collaborating with outside parties.
An organization will need an application to store and distribute electronic data rather than depending on paper-based files in order to accommodate the remote worker. Teams can swiftly share and transfer files while giving other members access with the use of file-sharing software. These programs eliminate the email transmission procedure, freeing inboxes from the annoying deluge of files and notifications. Any type of file can be shared, including documents, films, and even software.
If your organization has a document management system in place, you can manage who has access to view, modify, and remove files. Existing files and those that continue to require a wet signature, such as those for government agencies, may need to be digitized in order to guarantee that all employees have the same access to the information they need.
The One Thing Businesses Must Do To Remain Operational During Such Trying Times
“The one thing is to ensure that the business can perform and be active in the market. To do so, companies will need to continuously invest in their infrastructure,” says David Brown, President & Chief Commercial Officer of IPC Systems, Inc.
The current epidemic has caused some large, quick behavioral changes that have increased demand for infrastructure services, with communication being increasingly significant for both work and leisure purposes. Although desire for data storage, cloud services, connectivity, and quality (better speed data like 5G) was already on the rise before the epidemic, there has been a surge in attention and changes in demand that may end up being permanent (such as the rapid growth of videoconferencing tools).
The pandemic may lead to increased spending on broadband infrastructure and the rollout of 5G, especially in underserved communities, which would improve future resilience. As a result, the durability of the communication infrastructure, as well as applications and content distribution associated to it, will be of growing significance. This is due to the fact that employment has shifted and the pandemic has caused widespread disruptions.
Companies can only overcome these obstacles if their infrastructure is solid and they have few organizational gaps. The communication between employees, shareholders, and clients would be the most important component of an organization’s infrastructure. Any disruption will not simply paralyze a corporation if companies can maintain effective communication at all levels, regardless of the disruption. With continuous investment in a business’ infrastructure, companies can remain resilient in the current volatile market environment.
